“The Banquet Doors Are Judging Me”

The carriage stopped.

Evelina didn’t move.

Outside, voices murmured—soft, layered, controlled laughter mixed with the sound of clinking glasses and distant orchestral music.

It sounded like a world she was not qualified to enter.

The door opened.

Light spilled in.

Gold. Warm. Bright.

A guard stepped forward and extended a hand.

“Lady Evelina Vexmoor. We have arrived.”

She stared at his hand like it was a legal document signing her death sentence.

“…Can I go home instead?” she asked quietly.

The guard blinked.

“Pardon?”

Mochi, already peeking out of her mind, thought casually:

“Request denied. Plot location is mandatory.”

Evelina whispered, “I hate you.”

“You rely on me.”

“That’s worse!”

She stepped out.

The moment her heels touched the marble path—

Silence rippled outward.

Not complete silence.

The kind of silence where people stop pretending they weren’t watching.

Heads turned.

Whispers started instantly.

“…That’s her.”

“…Lady Evelina.”

“…The Vexmoor heir…”

“…Why is she here tonight?”

Evelina stiffened.

“I don’t like that tone,” she muttered under her breath.

Mochi replied:

“They are assessing threat level.”

“I am not a threat!”

“You are classified as one.”

“That’s not helpful!”

The grand doors of the palace loomed ahead.

Massive. Golden. Carved with scenes of past royal victories.

They looked less like doors and more like judgment.

Evelina walked forward.

Step.

Step.

Step.

Each step felt louder than it should’ve been.

Behind the doors, music swelled.

A servant announced:

“Lady Evelina Vexmoor has arrived.”

And the doors opened.

Inside, the ballroom was unreal.

Crystal chandeliers floated like frozen stars.

Nobles stood in arranged clusters like perfectly curated social ecosystems.

Every smile looked rehearsed.

Every glance measured.

And at the center—

The royal family.

The Crown Prince stood slightly forward, surrounded by courtiers.

And beside him—

A young girl with soft light-colored hair.

The heroine.

Lilia Brightwood.

She looked up immediately when Evelina entered.

And smiled.

Warm.

Genuinely warm.

That made everything worse.

Evelina’s brain immediately panicked.

“No. No smiling. Why is she smiling? That’s illegal. That means she’s going to forgive me or be nice to me and I haven’t even done anything yet.”

Mochi observed:

“Target is friendly. Unexpected variable.”

“I don’t want variables!”

A noble whispered nearby:

“She’s actually attending the banquet… after all those rumors…”

Another replied:

“Stay calm. Observe. The Vexmoor family never acts without reason.”

Evelina overheard.

She froze mid-step.

“I have a reason,” she whispered. “I just don’t know what it is yet.”

Mochi nodded:

“Good. Maintain ambiguity.”

“That is not a strategy!”

The Crown Prince stepped forward.

Prince Cedric Valmont.

Perfect posture. Calm expression. Eyes that looked like they were constantly calculating probability.

He looked directly at Evelina.

Not hostile.

Not warm.

Interested.

“…Lady Evelina,” he said slowly. “You honored us with your presence.”

Evelina bowed slightly too fast.

“I did not honor anything. I was physically transported here.”

Silence.

A few nobles blinked.

Mochi added:

“Good deflection. Sound mysterious.”

“STOP CALLING EVERYTHING GOOD.”

Lilia stepped forward slightly.

Her voice was soft.

“Lady Evelina… it’s a pleasure to meet you.”

Evelina stared at her.

This was the heroine.

The person she was supposed to destroy.

The person she was supposed to insult.

The person whose downfall was literally part of her “route.”

Evelina opened her mouth.

Closed it.

Opened it again.

Nothing came out.

Finally she said:

“…You are standing too close to me. That is suspicious.”

Dead silence.

Mochi:

“Bold opening move.”

“I WAS TRYING TO BE EVIL!”

Instead of flinching, Lilia tilted her head.

Then smiled again.

“I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to make you uncomfortable.”

Evelina’s soul briefly left her body.

“That’s not how villain interactions are supposed to go,” she whispered internally.

Mochi replied:

“She is not resisting. Adjust strategy.”

“I DON’T HAVE A STRATEGY!”

Across the room, the Crown Prince narrowed his eyes slightly.

“…Interesting,” he murmured.

A noble nearby leaned in.

“Your Highness?”

Cedric didn’t look away.

“She speaks like she is deliberately avoiding influence patterns.”

Evelina overheard.

“I am literally just trying not to die,” she muttered.

Mochi:

“Correct. But sound more intellectual.”

“NO.”

Somewhere deeper in the hall, laughter shifted.

Attention was already spreading.

Like ink in water.

The villainess had entered.

And everyone was already rewriting her meaning in their minds.

Evelina stood frozen in the middle of the ballroom.

Surrounded by nobility.

Staring at the heroine.

With a cat in her head confidently announcing:

“Phase One successful. We are now feared.”

Evelina whispered:

“I feel like I’m about to be misunderstood in twelve different ways at once.”

Mochi purred.

“Efficiency.”

And somewhere in the crowd—

Someone decided:

Lady Evelina Vexmoor was not simply attending the banquet.

She was observing it.

🐾🐾🐾🐾🐾🐾🐾🐾🐾🐾🐾🐾🐾🐾🐾🐾

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